Friday, November 30, 2007

Ever have one of those days when you are totally blank on everything? I got up this morning at the usual 5:30 am time. Jimmy went to work and I took the dogs out. It would be nice if I could take them out together but that won't work. Lady moves at a turtle's pace while Daisy is in a hurry to see everything. And of course their personalities are polar opposite. Lady thinks any warm being she sees is intruding on her personal turf while Daisy is a party girl and expects that all will just have to be delighted to see her. Look Daisy , it is only 5:45 get it done. I need coffee.

So after Jimmy leaves and the dogs have been walked and fed, I sat down for a cup of coffee. I started thinking of what to do today. Nope, don't want to do that, takes too long, nah no energy for that. See where this is going? I started thinking about what I should write about here today. Let me see...maybe this, no wait maybe that. Then I had a brilliant idea. Then something distracted me. The brilliant idea I had left my mind.

Then I started flipping tv channels. Christmas sales and ads everywhere. A PINK Christmas tree. Boy that will wake you up! All the channels seemed to have ads or program segments about Christmas trees, decorating , cooking or gifts. Naturally I was prompted to think about our decorations. Maybe we should go to the storage building and get out some of them. Aw forget it. Too much trouble to try to get out that stuff. Last year my only homage to Christmas was a poinsettia plant. Let's face it when you move from a large 3 bedroom house with room to spare to a two bedroom townhouse elbow room is a priority. I thought about getting out one of our trees. We have five. Yes I said five. Two 7 footers, one with lights and one without. Then there are the three little table trees which I used in the extra bed rooms and one on the mantle. We decorated the whole house for years, so there is a lot of stuff. The kids and grandkids used to love the animated people we had. We had Santa sleeping and snoring in bed, one climbing a ladder, one soaking his feet as he said "oh my feet" and Santa in the tub singing "Santa in the tub, rub a dub dub". We even had him standing at a refrigerator looking for a snack. And of course we had elves working on the toys.

Then we have a Dickens Village town which took up two and a half full sheets of plywood for tables plus more added space. I always loved the "Christmas Carol" story and movies so I liked to set the town up as I thought it would appear in that time. Sadly I have no room for any of this now. Maybe that is why thoughts went through my head and left. Some where I keep hearing the song "We need a little Christmas". Ok, now that I have been thinking about all of that, I'm getting tired. Oh, hey I just thought about...never mind it's gone now. Where is the eggnog?

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

The old grey mare I mean computer still has some life. Of course I could not get it to come on at all yesterday. I even called my son to see if he could come over to help Jimmy figure it out. But he called later in the evening saying he would not be able to make it over here. However, she says keeping fingers crossed, we may have solved the problem. When Jimmy came home yesterday he took the tower apart again. It was then he noticed that the cable to the hard drive was not in tight. He re-set it and the computer worked- for a couple of minutes. So he took it apart again. The cable still was loose. So he put in a new cable and everything seems to now be working fine.

The next thing is to get the other hard drive to work and use it as a second. He had transfered all the info on the old drive just in case it crashed. The data seemed to transfer ok but when he tried to check the second drive it had some error messages about pathways and reading. Might as well be a foreign language to me. But maybe we will get it straight soon. Then we can start to clean up things.

During the absence of computer time yesterday I watched a little bit of a story on the History Channel about magnets. I am not really in to magnets but I found it interesting how magnets are used in things including computers. I remember the days of the big magnetic tapes spining around. In 1956 IBM created the magnetic disk which at the time only held small bits of data. Would you believe 20+ disks held 5MB of data? Now, Ohio State University is working on a plastic magnet which eventually would be in computers. This new type of magnet would allow a computer to boot up instantly! That really would be good. No more waiting impatiently for access to the computer. For now I am just happy my computer is now on and running. Think I'll give it a pat on the head or tower. Good computer, sit and be nice.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Excuse me while I try to quit sneaking a little turkey. I can't decide to fix some leftovers from turkey or the chili Jimmy made this weekend. Since the weather was cold and rainy, Jimmy made a bunch of chili this weekend. Most of it is now in the freezer for later, yum.

I'm a little concerned about our computer. We've been getting a lot of "disk boot failure, insert system disk..." errors. Gee when we bought this computer it did not come with a system disk. And guess who did not think about making one . Wasn't me! For some reason since it has been chilly in this house the last few days it doesn't want to come on. I've been lucky because I have turned it on and it eventually warms up to run. I don't know if being cold has anything to do with it but...

As a result, I think Jimmy is going to try to transfer a bunch of his music to another disk as a back up. I know we need to clean the tower of dust since it hasn't been cleaned in a while. The way this desk is set up the tower sits in a space that makes it hard to plug and upplug things because you can't see in the back. Of course I guess we could always move the desk, but that is really hard to do. There is not enough light under the desk to see well and it is not easy to get to the tower back.

So, all of you in the blogosphere please say prayers and light candles for our hard drive.Hopefully we will be able to get things moved over and fix the problems for at least a while. As you can tell I am not too confident. Then again, a guy who lives down the street is a "mobile geek" with his own business. I hope we won't need him. Positive thoughts! We will be able to fix things until we can get a new drive, right? Right?

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Well as I sit here sweating after vacuuming, dusting and slinging the mop around, I feel the place is ready. Not perfect, but ready. We have all the fixings. The turkey is sitting in the refrigerator defrosting. Since we are not going to be able to join the rest of the family in Waco, we will be eating here. Amanda and Pat are supposed to join us. I am looking forward, sort of, to the annual D&C of the turkey. Can you tell I used to work around a lot of gynocologists? Oh yeah, I so enjoy digging into that turkey to get the giblets and neck out. How did I get elected to do this every year? Easy, I have the smallest hands. Funny we never seem to use the giblets or neck. We tried it once-too much trouble. I will leave the stuffing to Jimmy. He likes to make that. Of course I always seem to be the one who has to chop the onions and celery and what ever else needs to be chopped. The only thing we wish we had this year is a smoker. We have had that in past years and like it best. But not this year because we don't have the room to do it.

As I said I am sweating and the AC is running. We are supposed to hit possibly near record temperatures today. We will see. I can say right now it is very humid and cloudy right now. Watching the weather forcasters on tv, they say a cold front is on the way and is near central Texas and should be here this evening. This front may bring a little snow to the panhandle and north Texas, but not here. All we will get is rain for a few days. But the temperatures should have a bone chilling drop into the 40's and 50's if not lower. Well it is about time! I bought some wood for the fireplace. Right now it is still sitting in the trunk of the car. At least we could have a warm fire in the fireplace tomorrow if we need it. One of these days I will figure out how to heat the downstairs without overheating the upstairs. Ugh.

Well I'm off to rest my back which is complaining now. That is what I get for giving the dogs a bath. I hope you all will have a peaceful and safe Thanksgiving. And to one of my blogging friends I hope you have a happy birthday! And you thought I didn't know!

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

I'm in a hurry. How come this store has some large bottles of red wines but no white wines. I need a large bottle of white wine. The last time Jan was here I had to get an extra bottle of her favorite wine. I'm not saying she drinks a lot but the word lush comes to mind. Oh wait, that is what she calls Daisy.

Why is it when I am in a hurry I can't find what I want. Ok, I guess that I will just grab the box of wine. Wine in a box is such a strange concept to me. I get the box home. I put it in the refrigerator to cool down for later. Of course I have to move things around to make room. Note to self, a box of wine takes up more room than a bottle of the same stuff. And I thought I had only had to move things around for the turkey.Ha!

Ok, then comes the grand opening. I take the box out. Let me see, how do I open the box? Ah, push tab one, then push tab two, pull down tab three. Why do I get the feeling I am about to do an episiotomy? I'll just make a little cut down here so the baby will have an easier time coming out, ok? Tell that to the bag of wine. After I did the first three steps, I look for the pour spout. This is not as easy as it looks. Reaching around in the box for that slippery, shinny bag, oh yeah. Where is a gynocologist when you need him? I finally grab hold of that shinny little bag and rotate the shoulders, I mean pull up the pour spout so I can see it. Is it a boy or a girl? Can't tell by the spout. Finally I find how to pull out the spout so that I can pour the wine. Turn the knob on the bag counter clockwise. Where is the opening? Good thing I am not in a hurry for a glass of this wine. Oh, I see it. It is not a screw cap or cork. Ok, I don't have to remove the top of this. So I have to hold the box upright to clear the baby , I mean pour the wine. Finally a glass of wine is born, I mean poured. Ah, here's to you, or me.

Just who is the idiot who dreamed up a box of wine? How dare he think it is easy to open! Right! The spout is easy to pop out pouring the wine is so easy. I think I have the hang of it now. That is after I cleaned up the spilled wine from the counter. So which is easier, opening a box of wine and pouring it, or having a baby? After a lot of pain and work they both come out ok. At least I can toss the box after it is empty.

Monday, November 19, 2007

A new grocery store opened this week. The H.E.B grocery chain is trying some new things. I guess they may have lost some business to WalMart in the past. The new Vintage Market opened Nov. 14th. We thought we would wait a couple of days to check it out. Let's face it, anything new draws a crowd. So we waited until Friday. Bad idea. I guess because it was payday and the weekend before Thanksgiving it was packed. I even got hugged by a live shopping bag. Don't ask-it even hugged my husband. But it was an interesting tour. That is when we could weave around the crowds. We got a turkey for 27 cents a pound. We looked at a lot of different things. It had a 7,000 sq. ft. meat market with nice selections. How about 17 kinds of apples? It had 42 feet of seafood. I don't really care for that but it was ok. I even saw pots and pans, glasses and dinnerware for sale. Very stylish, too. Every so often they had cooking shows and samples. They have a very large wine area featuring 3000 wines. I would have loved to check that more closely but the place was mobbed. Of course when you have free wine tasting I guess that is to be expected. 3,000 wines and I could not find the one I usually buy. So since I would be having company over the holiday I decided to grab a "box of chablis". Ever try to open a box of wine? I think delivering a baby would be easier!

While we were impressed with the store, I think we will wait for a while to go back. The place was crowed and everybody seemed to get in my way and on my nerves. Just try to look at a variety of items while people are crowding around and pushing baskets everywhere. Every isle I went to seemed to have a backlog of people trying to see what was there. It reminded me of Black Friday. I went to Black Friday once. I have decided to skip it ever since. I don't care if they offer a $1000 plasma, HD tv for $10! I will just not fight the crowds. I would rather take my time finding what I want then have people running over me in the isles or kids blabbing on their cell phones standing in my way. Besides if I want to look at 400 varieties of cheese, it is going to take me a while. But at least it is something different. Maybe in a couple of weeks? Maybe then I can find my way around it a little easier. Hope springs eternal, until someone runs over my foot with a basket.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Tis the season and so on. The holiday season is fast approaching. I have a hard time thinking that Thanksgiving is next Thursay. So once again we are moving to the season of discontent. Do we say Merry Christmas, Happy Hollidays and so on. The Sea-Tac airport in Seattle got into trouble last year because they had Christmas displays featuring Christmas trees. But a Rabbi apparently took offense because they did not include a Menorah. And let's not forget Kwanzaa. So, in an effort to please everybody (not gonna happen) they put up a new display of a happy winter scene. Somehow it is just not the same.

Then we have a problem in Sidney, Australia. Santa Claus must now say "ha,ha,ha" instead of "ho,ho,ho" because "ho,ho,ho" may be offensive to women. Aw, come on! Ask any child, Santa says "ho,ho,ho"! I'm sorry, but I think that jolly old elf has always said "ho,ho,ho". Just ask Rudolph, and Prancer, Dancer, Dasher and the rest of the reindeer. I don't think my mother was offended, neither was I. But some people think the "ho" is too close to the US slang for prostitute. Maybe it's because the Aussies live "down under"? I certainly hope the PC police here in the good old USA don't decide to make the Santas here say "ha,ha,ha" It just won't be the same.

I don't know what to think anymore. I guess for this holiday season I will just have to say, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa. Ah, forget it. I'll do my thing, you do yours. You won't hurt my feelings no matter what you say, even "ho,ho,ho".

Thursday, November 08, 2007

I guess some people just can't seem to find the trash can. Most people have a kitchen trash can and a bathroom trash can. The bathroom one is frequently part of a set which includes a toothbrush holder, soap dish, and cup. Those are usually fairly easy to find. After all it matches the bathroom decor.

But the kitchen trash can is a different matter. Some people have this can under the sink. However this is usually small and doesn't hold much. Others have a tall kitchen trash can which holds a little more. Even trash bags are made to order for this. Yeah, go right to the isle and pick out the tall kitchen bags to put in the trash can. The 13 gallon ones fit fine. So how come some people can find the box of trash bags in the store but can't find the can at home?

Go to the pantry and on the floor you will find a nice plastic trash receptacle with one of those plastic bags sitting in it waiting to load up with unwanted items. So many things find their way to this. Empty milk cartons find their way there. Empty bread wrappers meet their end there. Even the tv dinner boxes end up there.

So how come some things can't seem to navigate their way to their natural end? Oh, maybe it is because someone never seems to find his way to the door. It would seem to be so easy. Finish using something? Walk into the kitchen, open the pantry door and toss the used item into the awaiting place. It is such a simple thing to do, right? So how come I find trash waiting on the desk in the living room, or the dining table or kitchen counter? It is not like we need GPS to find the place to put the trash. It does not take that many steps to walk there. Buy something at the store? Open the box as it sits on the table. Take out the item. Then walk 10 steps from the dining area to the pantry door. Put said box in trash. Need candy or a soda? Go to refrigerator. Take out the candy, unwrap it, walk the three steps from the kitchen counter and put it in the trash. Those poor peanutbutter cup wrappers won't get there by themselves. Remember that soda bottle that kept you company on the desk while you played poker on the computer? Give it a fitting end by taking it to the trash where it can mingle with the other daily discards. It might enjoy chatting with the grocery story ads that came in the mail today.

Maybe it is a guy thing. Maybe men really don't know where the trash can is kept. Try asking the wife. I am sure she will be able to tell you where to go (to find the trash can).

Monday, November 05, 2007

I happened to find myself in WalMart this morning when I discovered that not only did I have to dodge the Christmas decorations, but the pep squad too. W-A-L-M-A-R-T, clap, clap, rah, rah and so on. I saw a WalMart pep rally once when I was in Phoenix. My daughter used to work there and she hated them. Some things just should not be seen by the public. I have not been "lucky" enough to be in any of the stores here while the associates were having an employee rally. As I stood in line a lady behind me rolled her eyes. The clerk at the counter looked like she wanted to crawl under the counter. I really did not know what to do. My first instinct was to snicker or at least try to keep myself from laughing. After all, to WalMart, this is serious. As I looked around at other customers I noticed that they all seemed to wonder what they should do. We all looked at each other for clues. Everyone was trying to keep a straight face. Let's see do we look at this as a joke and laugh or do we get grumpy and think they are wasting our time. Let's face it, those 10 of 15 people were not at their assigned spots. They were standing in the middle of a sales area, clapping in unison while doing cheers for WalMart. It reminded me of being in a resturant and hoping no one tells the waiter that it is my birthday so they won't circle the table while singing happy birthday to me. And yet those employees seemed to be happy to be cheering. Or maybe not. Rah, rah, go WalMart, go. Yeah, I am going out the door as fast as I can.Snicker, snicker.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

In case you had not noticed Halloween is over and the race is on! Christmas commercials are already appearing on tv. Some even before Halloween was over. WalMart is getting a jump on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, by having a big sale early tomorrow. Those who like to get bargains be ready! WalMart is advertising electronics at big savings. They will be pushing a laptop for $338.

Where Walmart goes, other stores soon follow. Get your running shoes on. And don't forget your football helmet and pads. You are going to need protection. What's that? Do I hear "I'll be home for Christmas" ? Yes, it is part on a commercial on tv this morning.

Start thinking aboutwhat you want to buy and where you want to put the tree. Don't forget those outside lights which twinkle along the rooftops and yards. And don't forget to clean the carpets and make the house look nice. Get those decorations out of the attic.

Just think this is a great time of year! You can pick up some of your favorite Halloween candy on sale while you fight the crowds looking for Christmas gift bargains. Leave it to WalMart to get a jump on holiday shopping. After all, it's only November 1st. What will they do for the day after Thanksgiving? Dare we wait for better deals?

So it is time to start counting how many times we will see those wonderful commercials in one day and get into the spirit. It's time to shop. Christmas is at hand. Ready-set-go! Get away from all those commercials and make those cash registers ring!